How Heidi went from my growth hacking intern to building a viral iOS app

Two months ago, Heidi came over for a chill vibe coding and grilling afternoon. She wanted to ship something simple, so we opened the laptop, vibe coded for a few hours, and mapped the first version of her app: Hot Girl Steps.

The app is named after the TikTok trend where women go for ‘hot girl walks.’ The name resonates because it’s built for a niche, and the niche loves it. It looks fun, it feels like it’s made for women, and spoiler: it actually is. A female builder solving something for other women in an app market that’s still very much run by men.

Now in 2 months she’s on:

• 4.9 stars
• 88 ratings
• Almost 4,000 downloads

No ads, launch campaign, and VC decks. Just grinding on Facebook Groups.

She literally just posted on relevant Facebook groups and replied to everything. This is how breakout launches actually look. Relentless visibility and customer response.

Five years ago, Heidi joined one of my growth hacking internships, which teaches the iteration cycle of testing and shipping fast. You could already tell she was someone who’d apply what she learned. And she did.

That internship was about building real distribution muscles. Now she’s doing it. Not by sitting in Notion for 6 weeks planning a GTM, but by actually going to the people, showing the product, and talking like a human.

The reason most people don’t grow is that they think talking to users is optional. Or they only post once and expect miracles. Heidi posts. And keeps posting.

The product solves a real problem for a niche group that loves the angle. But it’s the hustle that got it found.

This is what’s possible when technical gatekeeping is removed. Vibe coding makes app building accessible to people who were shut out for too long. Women, non-technical founders, builders with real insight into their audience - this is how they ship now.